Vacuum operated hair clipper



Deg; 1," 19'59 W. R. WATKINS VACUUM OPERATED HAIR CLIPPER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed ma 29, 1958 Willie Rufus Watkins INVENTOR.

and Wavy De .'-1, 1959 w.R. WATKINS 2,914,849

V yam OPERATED HAIR CLIPPER Willie Rufus Wafkins 1N VEN'I'OR.

BY M way 15m United States Patent- 2,914,849 VACUUM OPERATED HAIR CLIPPER Willie Rufus Watkins, Greensboro, N.C., assign'or of i one-half toAlfred T. Staples, Greensboro, N.C.

" 7 Application May 29, 1958, SerialNo. 7 38,672 V Claims. c1. 30-133 The present invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in a vacuum operated hair clipper which is such in construction that it constitutes an advance in the art and, what is significant, has to do with improvements which have been perfected since Patent 2,807,086 issued to me on September 24, 1957.

Prior to filing the application for patent which maturedinto Patent 2,807,086 others had already explored the art and, at that time, one had to recognize that it was old in the art to provide an open ended tubular housing serving as a handle, a relatively movable cutting blade cooperable with a companion stationary guard mounted and serving as a clipper head at one end of the housing, a

rotary air motor mounted axially in the housing, a suction device functioning cooperatively with the other end of the housing, and a drive connection of one type or quently the cutting blades and is not suflicient to provide hair collection means in the one instrumentality. Therestantly open at both ends, said small air passage tapering from one end to the other end and having its larger intake end disposed in close proximity to and above the blades of the cutter head for collection and reception of the hair clipped from said cutter blades, a bladed suction motor mounted and confined for operation in said large air passage, means secluded in the large passage and operatively connecting said suction motor to the blades of said cutter head, said large passage having its airintake" end portion disposed on the casing at a side on said casing opposite to the air intake end of said small air pas- 2,914,849 Patented Dec. 1, 1959 wheel is housed in a recess in the rearward end or wall I fically mentioned above will become more readily apof an isolated enclosure confined in the main housing, that is an enclosure which is primarily there to encase the shaft and cooperating means for transmitting the motion from the air motor and shaft to the movable cutting blade of the cutter head construction.

The invention also features a housing made of half sections with spaced parallel partitions said partitions cooperating in defining the shaftenclosure or compartment.

Further, novelty is predicated on the double edged cutting blade both edges of which are identical in construction and have curved cutting teeth and wherein the guard, which expressly designed and provided for 'cooperation therewith, has a half portion of an interior surface thereof channeled or grooved to provide a blade honing and sharpening surface whereby the one blade may be used for a considerable period of time inasmuch as when one cutting edge is in use the other cutting edge is being sharpened and vice versa.

Features and advantages in addition to those; speciparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing wherein like numerals are employed to designate likeparts throughout the views:

' Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum operated hair clipper constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a section on the irregular horizontal line 33 of Fig. 2; I

Fig. 4 is a cross-section on the transverse line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing a modi respectively, of Fig. 5.

, panion lower half section is denoted at 10. These parts.

sage, whereby the hair-laden air sucked in at the point of cutting of the cutter blades is isolated and disposed of,

separate from air which is used in operating said motor, and a single suction tube connected to the rearward end of the casing and communicating with the discharge end of both of the passages.

With a view toward furthering the art and seeking to thus make acceptable progress it is an object in the instant matter to introduce several structural distinctions and improvements. To this end one improvement pertains to a simple elongated sectional housing with the vacuum neck and hose means at one end and the cutting head at the other end and with the portion therebetween housing an air motor. The air motor in this case is a simple relatively small ported wheel. However, this Reference is bad first to'Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive wherein it will be observed that the upper elongated half section or part of the housing is denoted at 8 while the comare so molded or otherwise fashioned or formed that they fit together in flangedinterlocked relationship as denoted at 12 in Fig. 4. The sections are separably joined by bolts or equivalent fasteners 14. The enlarged outer end portion of the over-all housing is denoted at 16 and terminates in a cutter head. The reduced. cylindrical rear end portion 18 constitutes a neck with which a vac uum hose or line 20 is connected. In practice the other end of the hose (not shown) is connected with any suitable source of vacuum. As seen in Fig. 2 the forward end of thehead 16 is oblique angled and the stationary guard of the cutter head is screwed orotherwise fastened in place at 22, the guard being denoted by the numeral 24. The lower portion of the guard is shouldered to cooperate with a shouldered end portion of the housing proper as denoted at 26 thus providing a satisfactory joint. The upper half portion, that is the slotted portion 28 has an open ended channel-like groove 30 corresponding in dimension with the channel-like groove 32 in the lower imperforate portion 34. The relatively movable cutter blade 36 has duplicate upper and lower cutting edges which are not provided with teeth 38 and 40 which are longitudinally bowed or curved to conform with the grooves 30 and 3 2. The center or body portion 42 of the blade is concavo-convex and fits over a convex surface on the guard. In this surface there is a keyway or groove 44- to accommodate a correspondingly shaped key 46. Generally speaking, the key and keyway may be said to be keystone-like in cross-section. S0 far'as the'description of the details has been carried the details of both 1 to 4, inclusive, there is a lengthwise divider or parti-' tion wall'48 in the upper part 8 which extends the full width of the housing as shown in Fig.4 and this. wall defines between itself and the top wall 50 a lengthwise open ended passage 52 providing for automatic hair return and disposal needs. The mouth of the passage is denoted at 54 (Figs. 2 and and the discharge end at 56 and the latter empties into the funnel-like trap 58 to which the aforementioned neck 18 is connected. With reference to Figs. 2 and 4 there is a similar lengthwise partition or divider wall 5 in the lower half section which in conjunction with the bottom wall defines the main air passage 57. The inlet for the passage 57 is denoted at the left at 60. The rear or right hand end portions of the walls or partitions 48 and 5 are joined by a closing wall 62 having a bearing containing a ball bearing race 64 for a shaft 66. A similar bearing 68 is provided in a post or upright 70 for the left hand end of the bearing. There is a pivot 72 on the left hand end of the post providing pivotal connection for the swinging arm or link 74 the right hand end of which is joined by a ball joint 76 to the upper end of an oval yoke 78. The lower end of the yoke 78 is similarly joined to the partition wall 5. There is a cam 82 fixed on the shaft and this cam serves to cooperate with the yoke in the manner seen in Fig. 4. Turning of the shaft therefore imparts motion to the cam 82, to the yoke 78 and to the link 74. Motion is transmitted from the link by way of a slightly resilient V-shaped or equivalent adapter or connector 84 which is pivotally joined at 86 to a carrier 88 (Fig. 3) having suitable springy end portions 90 in operating contact with the central portion 42 of the movable cutter blade. Of considerable significance is the fact that the rear end, in particular, of this center compartment is recessed to provide a cavity 92 in which the air motor or wheel 94 is rotated. This wheel is fastened or bolted in place at 96. The entire air wheel is in this cavity and the cavity is out of alignment with the upper hair return passage 52. On the other hand, it is in line with the air intake passage 57. In all other devices in this art the air-motor or vacuum propelled wheel is always in the path of the returning hair and hair collection thereon and consequently the efiiciency of the over-all clipper is impaired. With the present construction this objection is overcome. It will be seen therefore that the features set forth briefly have now been clarified and have to do with the upper and lower spaced parallel passages 52 and 57 extending substantially commensurate in length with the enlarged part of the housing and enclosing the inner housing or compartment for the transmission means, that is the shaft and adjacent cooperating parts of the shaft. The idea of positioning the cavity or recess 92 in front of the trap space 58 is also important. The self-sharpening blade forming a part of the novel cutter head is distinctive.

With respect now -to the modification seen in Figs. 5,

6 and 7 it will be evident that the primary distinction is not too much of a distinction after all. In other words, most of the parts that have already been described are common to this embodiment. That is to say, the suction or vacuum motor (also called the air motor) is denoted here at 98 in Fig. 5 and is likewise protectively shielded in the cavity 100 at the rear or right hand end of the inner shaft housing or compartment in which the shaft 102 is housed, the shaft being supported in a bearing 104 in the rear end wall 62 and in a bearing 1% in a support post 108 at the front end. Here there is an eccentric 110 fixed on the median portion of the shaft and surrounded by a friction driving annulus or collar 112. The collar works between operating blocks 114 and 116 one block being disposed on the long limb of the J-shaped operating member seen in Fig. 6. This long limb is denoted here at 118 and it has an eye 120 hinged in place at 122, the terminal or hook-shaped portion of the operating member being denoted at 124 with the block 116 connected to the shorter limb 126 thereof. The bight portion 124 has a suitable connecting pin 128 which is operatively connected at 130 to a pin 132 corresponding to the aforementioned connection or operating pin 86. Thus, only the shaft and drive means constitute the distinctions between the two embodiments of the invention under consideration. The generic characteristics are the same in the two embodiments and of course the significant points which are to be stressed are covered in the claims. The clippers herein shown and described are operated like any other hair clippers and by comparing the construction herein shown with my previous Patent 2,807,086, and examining the drawing in the light of the detailed description a clear understanding of the construction and opera tion will be clear. It is hardly necessary to emphasize the fact that the intake mouth 54 for the automatic hair return passage 52 is substantially diametrically opposite to the air intake 60 for the main air inlet passage 58.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A vacuum operated hair clipper comprising, in combination, an elongated hollow outer housing provided at one end with a cutterhead and provided at the other end with a discharge neck to which a vacuum hose is connected, a first partition mounted in said housing between lengthwise side walls of the housing and one end of said partition being adjacent to the cutterhead and the other end terminating forwardly of said neck, said partition being spaced from an adjacent top wall of the housing and cooperating with the top and side walls in defining a passage for the collection and disposition of hair which is sucked into said passage from the cutterhead, that portion of the housing beyond the partition, being reduced in cross-section and providing a gradually reduced intake merging into said neck, a second similar partition spaced in parallelism from the first partition and supported between the aforementioned side walls and also spaced above and generally parallel with the bottom wall of the. housing and defining a passage for incoming atmospheric air, said partitions and side walls cooperating in defining an inner housing within said outer housing, an end wall closing the inner end of the inner housing, said end wall having a recess, an air motor wholly confined for operation in said recess and spaced from said neck, a shaft connected at one end to said air motor and extending through a bearing in said end wall into the space of the inner housing, a motion transmitting link mounted for operation within the confines of the inner housing and having one end operatively connected to a median portion of said shaft, means in the forward end portion of said inner housing pivotally supporting said link, and additional means operatively connecting said link with a movable cutter embodied in said cutterhead.

2. A vacuum operated hair clipper comprising, in combination, an elongated hollow outer housing provided at one end with a cutterhead and provided at the other end with a discharge neck to which a vacuum hose is connected, a first partition mounted in said housing between lengthwise side walls of the housing, one end of said partition being adjacent to the cutterhead and the other end terminating forwardly of said neck, said partition being" Further, since numerous from adjacent top wall of the housing and "cooperating'withthe top and side walls in defining a passage for the collection and disposition of hair which is'sucked into said passage from the cutterhead, that portion of the housing, beyond the partition, being reduced in oro'ssisection and providing a gradually reduced intake rner'ginginto said neck, a second similar partition spaced above and generally parallel with. the bottom wall of the housing and defining a passage for incoming atmospheric air, said partitions and side walls cooperating in defining an inner housing within said outer housing, an end wall closing the inner endrof the inner housing, said end wall having a-recess, an air motor wholly confined for operation in said recess and spaced from said neck, a shaft connected at one end to said air motor and extending through a bearing in said end wall and into the space of linkage means comprises a pivoted motion transmitting link having a yoke, and an eccentric on the shaft cooperable with said yoke and for imparting motion from the shaft to the link, and means operatively connecting the pivoted end of the link to the movable cutter blade.

' ing, an end wall closing the inner end of the inner housing,

being spaced from an adjacent top wall of the housing and cooperating with the top and side Walls in defining a passage for the collection and disposition of hair which is sucked into said passage from the cutterhead, that portion' of the housing, beyond the partition, being reduced in cross-section and providing a gradually reduced intake merging into said neck, a second similar partition spaced in parallelism from the first partition and supported between the aforementioned side walls and also spaced above and generally parallel with the bottom wall of the housing and defining a passage for incoming atmospheric air, said partitions and side walls cooperating in defining an inner housing within said outer houssaid end wall having a recess, an air motor wholly confined for operation in said recess and spaced from said neck, a shaft connected at one end to said air motor and extending through a bearing in said end wall and into'the space of the inner housing, a motion transmitting link mounted for operation within the confines of the inner housing and having one end operatively connected to a median portion of said shaft, means in the forward end portion of said inner housing pivotally supporting said link, and additional means operatively connecting said link with a movable cutter embodied in said cutterhead,

. said cutterhead embodying a double-edged cutting blade 4. The structure defined in claim 2, and wherein said linkage means comprises a substantially J-shaped member having a long limb hingedly' mounted, and a curvate bight portion and the short limb opposed in parallelism to the long .limb, a shaft mounted between said limbs and provided with an eccentric, and blocks carried by said limbs between which said eccentric is operable' 5. A vacuum operated hair clipper comprising, in combination, an elongated hollow outer housing provided at one end with a cutterhead and provided at the other end with a discharge neckto which a vacuum hose is connected, a first partition mounted in said housing between lengthwise side walls of thehousing, one end of said both edges of which are identical in construction and have identical curved alternatively usable cutting teeth and a complemental guard having a half-portion of an interiorsurface thereof channeled to provide a blade honing andsharpening surface in which one set of cutting teeth are seated and operatively movable wherebythe one blade may be used for a reasonable time during which time the cutting teeth which are not in use are being sharpened and so that the cutting blade may be removed and reversed to bring the sharpened teeth into play and to seat the then dull teeth in the stated channel for sharpenpartition being adjacent to'the cutterhead and the other 4 end terminating forwardly of said neck, said partition ing and honing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS r 769,552 Manlove Sept. 6, 1904 926,726 7 Cahill July 6, 1909 2,194,515 Wright Mar. 26, 1940 2,292,453 La Mere Aug. 11, 1942 2,807,086 Watkins Sept. 24, 1957 

